Bargain Bites 2013

October 24, 2013

Our best bets for dining on the cheap in the Bay Area, broken down into categories from bar food to ramen to taquerias and beyond.

John Storey/Special to the Chronicle

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Chinese

The late bartender Chili Bill Eichinger spent years trying to make his way through all the Chinese joints in San Francisco proper, which he estimated at more than 400, with a myriad regional Chinese styles. Our Chinese picks are by no means the only good places around. Many of our favorites - Old Mandarin, Z&Y, Chili House, Mission Chinese - are over the $12 cutoff, but we focused on places that felt like real bargains.

Hakka Restaurant: At this Outer Richmond spot, chef Jin Hua Li cooks up Hakka delicacies of all sorts, but the best dishes are the vegetables, all of which come in generous portions. One bite of the fried pumpkin strips, coated to a light and almost sweet crisp with salted egg ($7.95), will reveal why it's a best-seller - and a must-order.

The late bartender Chili Bill Eichinger spent years trying to make his way through all the Chinese joints in San Francisco proper, which he estimated at more than 400, with a myriad regional Chinese styles. Our Chinese picks are by no means the only good places around. Many of our favorites - Old Mandarin, Z&Y, Chili House, Mission Chinese - are over the $12 cutoff, but we focused on places that felt like real bargains.

Hakka Restaurant: At this Outer Richmond spot, chef Jin Hua Li cooks up Hakka delicacies of all sorts, but the best dishes are the vegetables, all of which come in generous portions. One bite of the fried pumpkin strips, coated to a light and almost sweet crisp with salted egg ($7.95), will reveal why it's a best-seller - and a must-order.